Step 1: Meet the Pieces · about 25 min
The Knight
Goal: Kids can move a knight in an L and know it jumps over pieces.
You need: One board per pair · Knights and pawns
1 · Teach it (15 min)
Read these out loud, or put them in your own words. Show each board on screen or set it up on a demo board.
1.“The knight looks like a horse, and it moves in a funny way: two squares straight, then one square to the side. It makes a capital L.”
👉 Hold up a knight.
2.“Here's a trick: a knight always lands on the other color. If it starts on a light square, it lands on a dark one.”
3.“The knight is the only piece that can jump over other pieces, friends or enemies. It only captures the piece where it lands.”
- Moving one square diagonally and calling it an L.
- Stopping after two squares.
2 · Play it: Knight vs. Pawns (10 min)
Set up: White: a knight on b1. Black: pawns on b7, c7 and d7.
- White moves first. Take turns.
- The knight wins by capturing every pawn.
- The pawns win if one reaches the other side.
- This is harder than it looks! Swap sides and play again.
🎮 Kids with an iPad can also play this against the computer in student mode.
🎮 Also on the iPad: Knight Hops (Hop the knight to the star. Use as few hops as you can. Five stars to find!)
3 · Practice and pass check
On iPads, kids open Student → Step 1 → The Jumping Horse. On paper, print the worksheet. A kid passes by getting 2 of 3 on the pass check. The pass code for this lesson is S1-L5-5B.
Practice (4) with answers
1.Draw a dot on every square the highlighted piece can move to.
Answer: 8 squares
2.Draw a dot on every square the highlighted piece can move to.
Answer: 2 squares
3.Draw the fastest path to the ★ (moving only this piece). How many moves?
Moves: 2 moves
4.The knight is surrounded! Capture a pawn anyway. Draw an arrow or write the move.
Move: Nxc3
Pass check (3) with answers
1.Draw a dot on every square the highlighted piece can move to.
Answer: 8 squares
2.Draw the fastest path to the ★ (moving only this piece). How many moves?
Moves: 2 moves
3.Capture a pawn with the knight. Draw an arrow or write the move.
Move: Nxd5
Topic order based on: Chess for Children, Part 1 (topic order). All wording is original.